Polar RC3 GPS Sports Watch

I've had the watch for about a month now and I'm pretty happy with it. DCRainmaker has the authoritative review of the watch on his website, so you'll want to look at that before buying. I'm very impressed by the battery life -- after running a half marathon I charged the watch and went nearly two weeks (including a long run of over 1 1/2 hours, with most runs being about an hour long) with charging it again except for the thirty seconds or so that it charges while downloading the data.So far, the only cons I see are: 1) the heart rate monitor is subject to spikes -- I'll start runs and see a heart rate of 170 or higher (what I normally see at the end of a hard 5k or tempo run) at the beginning of an easy run. It's done this a few times (same as an earlier Polar watch I had), but so far it's always returned to a normal range before too long (the longest these readings have lasted is about .75 miles); 2) as you should know, you can't customize the data screens. Fortunately it's easy to change between screens to see what you want; for me the first screen (showing heart rate, total distance, and current pace) is useful; the second screen shows total elapsed time, which I might want to see instead of current pace, so at least I don't have to flip through many screens to get what I want to see; DCRainmaker complained about not being able to see lap pace, but the first screen gives you your pace at a given moment; it's disappointing that you can't customize the screens to see the data you want, but it is easy to switch between them -- not ideal, but easy nonetheless; 3) it's been far from impressive on picking up satellites so far. It's done so in a reasonable time -- within two minutes I believe -- but it's taken longer than my Garmin 405 did in the same location. I don't think where I've started my runs are necessarily the easiest places to pick up satellites, but there are trees, one-story houses, and power lines that may make it harder (but no high rises either). The GPS has been as accurate as I expected; far from perfect, with a 10-mile (trail) course I run being measured at just under 9 miles each time, and a road half marathon measured at 13.25 (this may even be accurate; keep in mind that a legit course measures the shortest possible distance -- including following every tangent on the course -- and includes an error factor as well). Most of my runs are on a nearby trail that may be as long as .7 miles (but one that I measured at .68 with a real estate measuring stick) and this watch gives me readings that have ranged from .64 to .68 (usually .65 or .66); but I run along roads for about .75 miles and it has always measured that portion of the run from .74 to .76, with one or two readings so far of up to .78 miles.One very nice feature is that the auto lap is independent of your own laps -- this is especially useful on race day on a marked course. With my previous watch (Garmin 405), if my watch measured the first mile as 1.01, it would auto lap when it thought I had run a mile and then, if I wanted the reading at the marker, I had to hit a lap and add the two number together (easy enough afterwards, but annoying when you're running a race). Not so with this watch: it will hit an auto lap at whatever distance you want (I believe it's preset for 1 km; I set it for 1 mile), but your own laps will be independent of this. To illustrate: if I run a half marathon and run the first mile in 8:00 and I hit the lap button, I'll have 8:00 for whatever distance the watch has calculated. Independent -- on a separate chart -- I'll see the time the watch thinks I ran a mile (let's say, before the first mile marker, at 7:53). Those two numbers are in different areas -- no math involved. I don't know if the Garmin 220 (the main competition in this price range) does that.Besides the aforementioned quirks, the only real problem I've had with the watch is with the heart rate monitor strap -- so far it's irritating the skin around the clasp. Fortunately, the discomfort is not noticeable while running or even most of the time afterwards, so that's a slight improvement over my experience with the Garmin straps (their premium strap irritated my skin so much that I only wore it during tempo runs and races -- and often regretted doing so), but a disappointment considering that the previous Polar straps I had (to go with a 200 RSX or something) never caused any problems. I have yet to try the monitor on the previous strap which would solve this problem.

Edit 4/1/2015I almost bought the M400? but saw the Amazon warning about the product and decided to get another one of these from the lightning deal the other day.I'm trying to attach a picture to highlight my battery issue with the original purchase....the picture shows the new and old one, both had been fully charged. I used the new watch for an hour long workout without GPS, just tracking heart rate. It's less than 1 day later and you can see the old watch (not being used at all) is almost out of power. So far the new one is working fine.I'll try to update in a month or so with any potential battery issues.I had this watch for some time now and have debated how to rate this a write my review. I've settled on 3 stars as I can't go completely middle of the road (2.5).First off, everything arrived on time and in perfect condition. The manual was easy to read, the watch was easy to setup and I was an extremely happy camper (please note the was).I purchased this as my Polar FT-7 has just up and died, had some Amazon credit and figured this would be a really nice upgrade to bring along on my hikes and bike rides. And it is/was, tons of screens with all the information you could want, uploads to the polar fitness site with all kinds of graphs, charts, training points and more. I love the elevation feature and charting ascents up 14'ers, or mapping out my rides and comparing the peak heart rate with where I was on my route. Definitely a big help in training.So, with all the praise, why aren't I rating this higher? Sadly it is because after using it for about 45 days or so, the battery now barely holds a charge for is completely discharged after 24-36 hours, whether or not it is being used. When using it with the GPS turned on, I am lucky to get about 4-5hours out of it, and then it's dead. I can jury rig it with a battery pack, but that is a hassle that I shouldn't' have to deal with so soon into my purchase.Polar support was awful, at least to me, despite what I have heard from other folks. I contacted them and was told that in order for them to even consider fixing/replacing/diagnosing the watch, I had to send it back to them on my dime, and make sure to include the original USB cable (which I cannot for the life of me find - it was too short so I've been using a longer one) and that without that, they cannot do anything for me.Perhaps this was wrong information from the person I corresponded with , but it really turned me off on Polar. Now I still use the device for shorter workouts and the like, mainly because it syncs up with Virgin Healthmiles and I get $$ from work for the milestones.Sadly, the second I find a way to get a Garmin device that will sync up with Virgin, I'll toss this aside and move to Garmin.

I absolutely love this watch. It is easy to use, fits well on my wrist, and includes a lot of features normally found only in more expensive models.Design1. The overall feel of the watch is wonderful. It matches the shape of my wrist wonderfully and doesn't look large or out of place (my wrist is quite small for a male)2. The styling is pretty conservative, but this is good since it allows you to wear it as a casual watch when not running. Most GPS watches are brightly colored or extremely bulky. This one doesn't look much different than a normal watch.3. The buttons could be a bit smoother in their operation (they can sometimes get slightly caught), but their overall feel is good.4. The charging/interface port is, well, stupid. It is clumsy to get it open, and when you do, getting the USB cord into the port is a game of trial and error. But, when you do happen to make contact, the connection feels solid. Even though I think Polar made a mistake with the design of this port, it uses a cord that is widely available and used in pretty much every piece of electronics out today (cell phones, cameras, etc). This is a plus because if you happen to leave your charger at home while away for a race, someone will most likely have the cord you need.5. The screen is large and easy to see while running. The information on screen is nicely organized and I would like for the light to be a bit brighter, but that isn't a big deal.The main problem with this watch is Polar and the website. The website works most of the time, but when it doesn't, don't even bother contacting Polar because they don't respond. Polar needs to work out the bugs on the unreliable site along with smoothing out its clumsy interface. But, if you can get beyond this, the watch is a good buy and a better value than Garmin.

RunningやCyclingのモチベーションアップにと同社のRS300Xを使用していました。値段のわりには良い製品で毎回使用していたのですが、もう少し細かいTraining評価と、GPS一体型がほしくRC3GPSにレベルアップしました。感想としては、楽しい！の一言につきます。その日のTrainingをUSBにてウエブに転送するとRS300Xでは出来なかった詳細なデータと評価をしてくれます。Training効果のところで回復Trainingなのか、定常状態Trainingなのか判別してくれて、さらに有酸素運動の改善になったのか、炭水化物が主なエネルギー源なのか、脂肪燃焼に効果があったのかetc・・・と色々細かく評価してくれます又、消費カロリーの内、脂肪燃焼率は何％なのかなど楽しくて運動したくなる気持ちにさせてくれます。ただ、この製品に限らず他社の製品にも同じことが言えると思いますが、「最高心拍数」の値の計算があいまいのように思います。年齢を入力すると最高心拍数を計算してくれますが、計算式が220-年齢となり自分で例えると220-43で、177が最高心拍数になります。平均的に運動している人とそうでない人が同じ値と言うのはおかしい、ゾーンTrainingで心拍が変動しすぎになり又、Training負荷のところで、体調は良好なのに激しい運動は避けましょうとなります。しかし、最高心拍数を出すことは=限界ぎりぎりという事なので安全を考慮ししかたないのかなとも思います。自分は、1年ほど前に190を出したことが有り、その後体調を崩したのでこれが最高心拍数と判断し190を入力して使用し安定しています。※最高心拍数を求めることは危険が伴うので自己判断でお願いします。最高心拍の値を入れるのは難しいですが、とても良い製品と思います。★４としたのは、GARMINのForeAthleteのようにクイックリリースシステムがあればバイクで使用するときにわざわざ腕にはめなおすてまがはぶけると思いました。又、ケイデンスセンサー、スピードセンサーが電池交換できず消耗品扱いそれも6000円もするのに、この御時世で何で？という事で★４としました。

good watch. great price.

Quick delivery. All components new. Watch works great. GPS connects quickly. HR monitor is right on. No issues.

I initially was very happy with this watch, that I bought because of GPS preciseness according to some reviews. I liked the training programs that you can download to the watch that guide during running.GPS however appeared not very precise (when viewing the running map later I often crossed the river while never having crossed it in reality!) and not better than the Garmin I used before. More importantly, the USB port went off my watch stacking on the usb cord after less than 5 months of use ! The usb cord fits in very tightly, which makes it hard to remove the cord after it is plugged in. Finally, the watch is not well water proofed while you would expect that for such a price.

Fast shipping! Very nice watch!